We all know that the earth is getting warmer, but why we blamed CO2 as the reason?

The atmosphere is one of the reasons the earth is habitable. That because it has a role to protect us from the sun radiation and also keep our planet warm. Unlike earth, the moon doesn’t have an atmosphere, thus, make the moon’s temperature ranging from minus 173 C up to 127 C. When the radiation hit the earth surface, it bounces up to the atmosphere then back again to the surface then back again to the atmosphere, and so on. This process happened for several times until it escapes from our atmosphere.

So, why all of this has to do with carbon dioxide?. 

The major constituents of Earth’s atmosphere are nitrogen (78%), oxygen (20%), carbon dioxide (0,04%), helium (0,0005%), methane (0,0001%). 

Carbon dioxide and methane are parts of the greenhouse gases. What makes them different are because they not only emit radiation but also absorb it.  Thus keep the earth warm. Even other planets such as Mars and Venus their atmosphere also contains greenhouse gases. Without them, the earth’s temperature would be minus 18 C.

Well, greenhouse gases are basically good for our planet, the problem though, they are more abundant. Causing earth temperature considerably raising. 

The graph below shows the strong correlation between earth temperature and CO2 level, although, other factors may also involve.

During the ice age cycles of the past million years or so, carbon dioxide never exceeded 300 ppm. The figure, however, has begun to rise since the Industrial Revolution in 1750. Although the figure not much higher about 5 billion tons a year, it skyrocketing to more than 35 billion tons per year by the end of the 20th century.

China and the USA are now the most contributors to the raising of CO2. Deforestation, burning fossil fuel, transportation, agriculture and many others are the activities by which emit carbon dioxide.